The present invention relates to a sunscreen composition and, more particularly, the present invention relates to a cosmetic preparation for application to the skin for protecting the user against the harmful effects of exposure to the sun.
Nowadays, many people wish to appear tanned because they have equated a deep rich tanned look with health and well-being. In an attempt to acquire the tanned look, many procedures have been suggested. These include, for example, various cosmetic preparations for dyeing or staining the skin. Such preparations, however, may color the skin temporarily, but the coloring agent either washes off or wears off. While many of these preparations provide a natural-looking tan, others provide a coloration which is uneven and unnatural-looking. Many people prefer direct exposure to the sun for acquiring a "healthy" tan.
Direct exposure to the sun can be tolerated by some people whose natural pigmentation protects them against the harmful effects of the solar radiation. Other people, however, are easily burned and cannot tolerate prolonged exposure to the sun. The recommended procedure for acquiring a tan, therefore, is to expose ones skin to the sun for only a short duration each day for a period of several days or weeks until the tan is acquired. This procedure is not convenient for those people who may expose themselves to the sun only on weekends or infrequently. Thus, compositions have been formulated for application to the skin to filter out a large amount of the ultraviolet radiation so that exposure for several hours will still provide the effect of exposure for a short period of time. These compositions are well known in the art and are all based on one or more known sunscreening agents. Some of these compositions are formulated as liquids for application to the skin and others are formulated as creams. They all suffer from one or more disadvantages in lack of ease of application, having a base which is easily washed off the skin upon contact with water, or unusual difficulty in removing them from the skin when their effect is no longer needed.